Society

People, politics, tech, money, sport, work and entertainment all intertwine to make up today’s ever-changing, crazy, delightful and frustrating society. The majority of my second-hand-views are about life within our society and, with a left-of-centre stance, there’s bound to be something here that gets your goat. When it does, buy a bundle of tibs, donate one to my charity of choice, Stay Close to Neve, and get it off your chest with a retort – better out than in. Have fun, be good and keep at ‘em.

does ‘the promise’ live up to its promise?

Carl - December 14, 2010

If like me you’ve been eagerly awaiting Springsteen’s much debated new album to hit the shops then it seems an automatic no-brainer of a purchase. But upon reading David Gingell’s excellent blog the other day I came across his review and it’s put me all in a quandary. Here’s his worthy appraisal and I’ll let you know if I shell out some of the hard-earned and buy it myself for Christmas: “I believe everyone should have a soundtrack to their lives. Maybe a golden period of music continually to fall back on or perhaps a musical genre that has been a backdrop to their ageing process. For me it is an artist that has accompanied me since 1978 and continues […]

you heard it here last

Carl - December 10, 2010

Over the last couple of months I’ve posted on many contentious subjects and it’s always wise to go back, examine how things have turned out and conclude you were right all along, even if you weren’t. Here’s an update on a couple: Boozed up on the cheap – Scotland’s administration failed in their attempt to set a precedent and enforce a minimum ‘alcohol unit’ price. Consequently, the Scotch (sic) will continue to peg it at an alarming rate, A&E departments the country over will remain the war-zones they have become and the Government will continue to subsidise this abuse by an overly-lenient taxation policy. Flag of convenience – God bless Kevin Pietersen. How can I ever have said those harsh […]

count them in, count ’em out

Carl - December 10, 2010

Do you know what, I really don’t know where I stand on immigration. The Liberal within me wants free entry to economic migrants, those seeking political asylum, students entering for a better education, and their dependants. On the one hand, I want Great Britain to be an open, free and welcoming place to those seeking to make their home here. But then there’s the darker side of me that wants to limit access to who absolutely need to come here for safety’s sake and to those who will definitively benefit the economy or society by doing so. This is the side of me that is mindful of the pressure placed upon our social service provision that can be caused by […]

joke of the day

Carl - December 8, 2010

“Phoned the Liberal Democrats office the other day and asked for a copy of their manifesto. They said they’d sold out. I said ‘I know, but can I have a copy of the manifesto?’ ” Boom. Boom. But at least they’re in the news. Exactly where is the Labour party? Yeah, I know Ed Miliband has been off on paternity leave but when’s he due back? Oh, four weeks ago. In the months since ‘Red Ed’ (never has such a strong moniker been less deserved – ed.) was elected Labour’s leader, he has done precious little to bring himself into the public’s consciousness, let alone, God forbid, establish the politically-essential ‘Mili-Brand’. In fact he’s proved to be so invisible both […]

can pay, won’t pay

Carl - December 7, 2010

Have I mentioned that I don’t approve of Sir Philip Green’s tax avoidance measure of paying a £1.2Bn dividend to his Monaco residing non-domiciled wife, Tina? Oh, only a couple of times. And what about Vodafone’s tricky little £6Bn loophole exploitation? Ah, yeah I may have let it slip out once or twice. The latest one in an apparent long-line of such creative corporate measures is Kraft, the new owners of Cadbury, who are allegedly working on a plan to shift key parts of the 186 year old business to Switzerland, which will result in depriving the UK of many tax millions. In a move first devised by Pepsico for its UK subsidiary Walker Crisps, Kraft is reorganising the Bourneville-based […]

we’re doomed, mr. mainwaring, doomed

Carl - December 6, 2010

Turbulent times, these. Irrespective of the colour of our political persuasion we all, either directly or indirectly, have some skin-in-the-financial-game of investments and the subsequent return on that investment. However red we (OK, I) claim to be I am inextricably linked to the free market and my financial worth (and freedom) is undeniably determined by such factors as house prices, interest rates, pension fund returns and Footsie index levels (I’ve always liked the sound of the latter more than its reality). The bad news is that that worth is imminently to take a pounding as a series of financial disasters are about to strike as we email. As I’ve mentioned before, I don’t like property developers; they’re just not my […]

i know, i know

Carl - December 2, 2010

OK, I know I promised I wouldn’t mention the ‘people’s royal wedding’ ever again but I can’t hold back on one element which has now raised it’s head on a couple of occasions. No, it’s not the venue, the ring, the bill, the dress or any of that palaver, it’s about the touchy subject of social mobility. Regardless of what happens on the day, does this extraordinary union prove the unthinkable – that true social mobility now exists in today’s society? Unbelievably, it was only one short generation ago when Lady Diana Spencer, the daughter of an Earl, was openly referred to as a ‘commoner’ by the landed and ruling gentry. But, on the face of it, Catherine Middleton appears […]

bah humbug

Carl - December 1, 2010

So, this year we are all to have ourselves an austerity little Christmas are we? The dawn of the 25th heralded in to the open sobs of children failing to see the true festive spirit of a satsuma, the plastic toy from a McDonalds’ happy meal and a handful of brazil nuts with the chocolate already sucked off! But do not despair, all is not lost. The first thing to remember is that, taking my lead from Talk Talk’s 1985 hit ‘Life’s what you make it’, Christmas is what you make it, not necessarily what the UK’s retail industry would have you make it. Let the Joneses bankrupt themselves keeping up with each other in frippery, baubles and Wiis, whilst […]

foot in mouth is nothing new

Carl - November 27, 2010

Front bench, back bench or House of Lords. Prime Ministers through the ages have long dreaded the vacuous, infantile, ridiculous, outrageous, offensive and often just downright plain silly outbursts from so-called colleagues, friends and supporters. If ever a gagging order is warranted it surely belongs to those of your own persuasion and party. Lord Young of Graffham is just the latest in a long line of illustrious contributors to the embarrassing ‘foot in mouth’ gaffe. With a runaway mouth at the best of times he was just the kind of accident waiting to happen and undoubtedly his recent ‘they’ve never had it so good’ will have gone some way to upsetting the calm of Cameron and Clegg’s weekend. Joy of […]

it’s the real thing

Carl - November 24, 2010

In doing my research for the ‘rule Britannia’ piece below (you research this rubbish? – ed) I came across a fascinating interview with rapper, ex-hustler and multi-millionaire, Jay-Z. Through his 14 years dealing on the streets I certainly feel he has something of an intimate knowledge of crack and cocaine and I thought I’d share his thoughts with you, verbatim. Most interestingly, he never touched the stuff himself and says there was a strict code among successful hustlers and often quotes the line from Al Pacino’s Scarface: don’t get high on your own supply. “Cocaine wasn’t new and neither was selling it. But crackheads were different. They got no respect. They were former neighbours, ‘aunts & uncles’, but once they […]